HORACE  H.  BANCROFT 

Assistant  Director  Illinois  Centennial  Celebration 


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PUBLISHED  BY 


Illinois  Centennial  Commission 


An  Historical  Resume 


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ILLINOIS 


An  Historical  Resume 

BY 

HORACE  H.  BANCROFT 

Assistant  Director  Illinois  Centennial  Celebration 


PUBLISHED  BY 

Illinois  Centennial  Commission 


[Printed  by  authority  of  the  State  of  Illinois.] 


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Schnepp  &  Barnes,  State  Printer* 
Springfield,  III. 

1918. 

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:  : :  10844— 3m 

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An  Historical  Resume. 


THE  Mound  Builder,  the  Indian,  the  Spaniard,  the  Frenchman,  the 
Englishman  and  the  American  have  all  held  dominion  over,  or 
claimed  title  to  the  territory  comprised  within  the  boundary  limit  of 

Illinois.  Speculation  must  largely  suffice  for  our  knowledge  of  that 
pre-historic  race  which  we  term  the  Mound-Builders.  The  Indian 
was  discovered  by  the  French  missionary  priest  and  explorer,  and 
with  the  coming  of  the  French  we  have  the  beginning  of  civilization 
in  the  Mississippi  Valley. 

In  1673  Father  Marquette  and  Louis  Joliet  sailed  down  the 
Mississippi  and  up  the  Illinois,  and  their  advent  marked  the  initial 
visit  of  the  white  man  to  the  Prairie  State.  LaSalle,  the  empire 
builder,  whose  vision  of  a  new  France  in  the  Western  Hemisphere 
fell  short  of  realization,  but  whose  personality  and  character  has 
left  its  impress  for  all  time  upon  the  history  of  the  State,  came  in 
1679.  His  expedition  led  to  the  first  permanent  settlements.  Tonty, 
the  Italian,  to  whom  is  credited  the  discovery  of  coal  in  the  new 
world,  near  the  present  town  of  Utica,  in  LaSalle  County,  accompanied 
LaSalle  and  shared  with  him  the  rigors  and  hardships  of  that  early 
day. 

*  ’  *  ”  y, " *  *  * ;  •  ’ 

The  French  Occupation,..  ,  ;  ,  ,  j  . 

The  French  occupation,  by  discovery  and  exploration,  began  in 
1673  and  continued  until  1765.  In  the  latter  year  :tft?*  country  .passed 
from  French  to  English  control.  Little  difference,,  however,  occurred 
in  the  character  or  habits  of  the  people,  save  that  a  French  immi¬ 
gration  took  place  on  the  part  of  many  who  preferred  to  live  under 
Spanish,  rather  than  British  rule.  This  was  accomplished  by  merely 
crossing  the  Mississippi  River. 

The  French  missionary  priests,  who  were  of  the  Jesuit  and 
Recollect  orders,  conducted  the  earliest  Christian  services  in  Illi¬ 
nois.  They  began  the  establishment  of  missions  in  the  territory  and 
sought  to  give  the  Indians  and  scattered  white  population  religious 
instruction. 

On  the  occasion  of  his  first  visit  Father  Marquette  established 
a  mission  near  Starved  Rock,  which  he  named  the  “Mission  of  the 
Immaculate  Conception.”  This  mission  was  afterwards  removed  to 
the  site  of  the  permanent  Kaskaskia  on  the  Mississippi  River.  Father 
Gravier  came  from  Canada  in  1688  and  his  labors  extended  from 
Mackinac  to  Biloxi  on  the  Gulf  of  Mexico.  In  1700  a  mission  and 
permanent  settlement  was  established  at  Cahokia,  a  few  miles  distant 
from  the  present  city  of  East  St.  Louis.  Father  Hennepin  arrived  in 
Illinois  in  1680  and  began  the  exploration  of  the  Upper  Mississippi, 
where  he  discovered  the  Falls  of  St.  Anthony,  which  he  named. 
Father  Hennepin  was  closely  associated  with  LaSalle. 


4 


George  Rogers  Clark  Expedition. 

The  English  control  was  brief,  lasting  from  1765  to  1778.  On 
July  4,  1778,  Col.  George  Rogers  Clark,  by  a  surprise  attack,  cap¬ 
tured  Fort  Gage  in  Kaskaskia  and  later  captured  Fort  Vincennes  in 
Indiana.  He  took  possession  of  these  forts  in  the  name  of  the 
Colony  of  Virginia,  as  his  expedition  had  been  fitted  out  and  aided 
through  the  influence  of  Patrick  Henry,  then  governor  of  Virginia. 
The  capture  of  these  forts  by  Clark  proved  one  of  the  most  import¬ 
ant  events  in  American  history.  When  peace  was  declared  in  1783 
the  question  of  the  territory  west  of  the  Allegheny  Mountains  was 
one  of  the  disputed  issues.  Benjamin  Franklin,  one  of  the  peace 
commissioners  for  the  United  States,  sitting  at  the  peace  table,  con¬ 
tended  vigorously  for  the  territory  conquered  by  Clark.  This  territory 
was  conceded  by  England  to  the  colonies,  and  the  Clark  expedition 
thus  becomes  responsible  for  the  western  boundary  of  the  colonial 
possessions  at  the  close  of  the  Revolutionary  War,  which  boundary 
was  marked  by  the  Mississippi  River  instead  of  by  the  Allegheny 
Mountains. 


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The  territory  conquered  by  Clark  was  first  organized  as  the 
Illinois  County  of  Virginia.  Patrick  Henry  named  Colonel  John 
Todd,  county  lieutenant  or  commandant-in-chief,  for  the  county. 
Later  when  the  Ordinance  of  1787  was  passed,  sometimes  called  the 
second  Magna  Charta,  and  containing  that  splendid  declaration 
that,  “Religion,  Morality  and  Knowledge,  being  necessary  to  good 
government  and  the  happiness  of  mankind,  schools  and  the  means  of 
qducati'on  shr^Jbfo  revet  b<?  encouraged,”  the  Illinois  County  of  Virginia 
became'  a  pa(r4  of c the ‘gTeaP  Northwest  Territory. 


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Pioneer  Protestant  Preachers. 

i 

1  The  pioneer  Protestant  preacher  in  Illinois  was  Elder  James 
Smith,  a  Baptist  minister,  who  came  to  New  Design,  now  a  part  of 
Monroe  County,  in  1789.  Rev.  David  Badgley  and  Rev.  Joseph 
Chance  followed  in  1796,  and  the  first  denominational  association 
was  formed  in  1807  by  the  Baptists.  The  Methodists  were  also 
among  the  first  of  the  Protestant  sects  to  hold  religious  services  in 


Illinois,  and  these  were  held  in  that  part  of  the  State  known  as  the 
American  Bottom  in  1796.  Peter  Cartwright  was  one  of  the  most 
widely  known  pioneer  Methodist  preachers.  He  was  born  in  1785 
and  lived  until  1872.  He  was  a  conspicuous  figure  at  the  early  camp 
meetings  and  served  two  terms  in  the  legislature.  He  was  a  zealous 
supporter  of  the  government  during  the  Civil  War  and  for  fifty 
years  was  a  presiding  elder  in  his  denomination.  In  1814  the  Mass¬ 
achusetts  Missionary  Society  sent  two  missionaries  to  Illinois.  In 
1816  the  first  Presbyterian  church  was  organized  at  Sharon  in 
White  County  by  the  Rev.  James  McGready  of  Kentucky.  Seth 
Gard  assisted  Rev.  James  Pool  in  the  organization  of  the  Barney’s 
Prairie  church  in  1819  which  was  the  first  church  established  by  the 
Christian  denomination.  The  Congregationalists  began  to  arrive 
with  the  tide  of  immigration  that  set  in  from  the  east  in  the  thirties. 
The  first  Congregational  church  was  organized  at  Mendon,  in 


5 


Adams  County  in  1833.  Porter,  Turner,  Beecher,  Sturtevant  and 
Post  were  well  known  names  among  the  Congregationalists.  In 
1834  the  first  preacher  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  church  arrived. 
This  was  Rev.  Philander  Chase,  afterwards  a  bishop. 

New  Design,  in  Monroe  County,  is  also  famous  for  the  fact  that 
the  first  American  school  teacher  that  ever  appeared  in  Illinois, 
Samuel  John  Seely,  settled  there  in  1783. 

The  Issue  of  Statehood. 

Out  of  the  Northwest  Territory  there  was  carved  five  states — 
Ohio,  Indiana,  Illinois,  Michigan  and  Wisconsin.  The  territorial 
history  of  Illinois  began  in  1809  when  the  president  named  Ninian 
Edwards  territorial  governor.  For  nine  years  Illinois  continued  as 
a  territory.  In  1818,  the  issue  of  statehood  arose.  There  was  esti¬ 
mated  to  be  forty  thousand  people  within  the  territory  which  was  a 
sufficient  number  at  that  time  for  statehood.  One  of  the  first  ques¬ 
tions  to  settle  was  the  boundary  limit  of  the  proposed  state.  The 
territory  of  Illinois  was  represented  at  the  time  by  Nathaniel  Pope, 
as  territorial  delegate.  In  the  bill  for  statehood  it  was  proposed  to 
mark  the  northern  boundary  as  established  by  the  Ordinance  of 
1787.  An  amendment  introduced  by  Pope  changed  the  northern 
limits  from  an  east  and  west  line  running  through  the  southern  ex¬ 
tremity  of  Lake  Michigan  to  an  east  and  west  line  parallel  with  40 
degrees  and  30  minutes.  This  amendment  gave  to  the  state  terri¬ 
tory  out  of  which  was  carved  fourteen  of  the  northern  counties. 
Had  the  original  provision  remained  in  the  bill,  Illinois  would  have 
been  one  of  the  smaller  states  of  the  Union,  territorially;  fourteen  of 
the  northern  counties  of  the  State  would  have  belonged  to  Wisconsin ; 
Illinois  would  have  been  without  a  lake  front  and  Chicago  would 
have  been  in  Wisconsin  instead  of  Illinois.  Nathaniel  Pope  de¬ 
serves  the  gratitude  of  Illinoisans  for  his  stand  in  the  matter  of  the 
boundary  limits  of  the  state.  He  wanted  a  part  of  Lake  Michigan  to 
bound  the  northern  limits,  as  he  believed  some  day,  there  would  be 
built  upon  the  shores  of  Lake  Michigan  a  great  city,  and  he  wanted 
that  city  to  be  a  part  of  Illinois.  Lie  declared  that  through  the 
portals  of  this  great  city  there  would  come  to  Illinois,  the  eastern 
people  and  the  eastern  civilization.  Cairo  and  Shawneetown  were 
the  ports  of  entry  in  southern  Illinois,  for  the  people  and  civiliza¬ 
tion  of  the  South.  With  an  adequate  port  of  entry  on  the  North, 
there  would  meet  on  the  prairies  of  Illinois,  the  best  blood  of  the 
East  and  the  South.  With  these  two  forces  of  American  civiliza¬ 
tion  within  the  state,  one  would  act  as  a  check  upon  the  other,  and 
in  the  event  of  a  settlement  of  the  issue  of  human  slavery  the  State 
of  Illinois  would  under  all  circumstances  remain  in  the  Union. 
How  literally  true  was  this  vision  of  Nathaniel  Pope.  We  do  well 
to  honor  his  memory  in  this  Centennial  Year. 

Constitutional  Convention  Held. 

The  Enabling  Act  fixing  the  present  boundary  limits  of  Illinois 
was  passed  April  18,  1818.  The  next  step  in  the  process  of  state- 


6 


hood  required  the  calling-  of  a  Constitutional  Convention.  This  Con¬ 
vention  met  August  3,  1818  at  Kaskaskia.  It  was  composed  of 
thirty-three  delegates.  There  were  fifteen  counties  in  the  state  at 
the  time,  twelve  of  these  counties  were  given  two  delegates  each, 
three  of  the  counties  three  delegates  each.  The  Convention  or¬ 
ganized  by  electing  Jesse  Burgess  Thomas,  as  chairman,  and  William 
C.  Greenup  as  secretary.  One  of  the  dominant  characters  of  the 
Convention  was  Elias  Kent  Kane,  after  whom  Kane  County  was 
named,  and  a  man  who  held  many  offices  of  trust  and  responsibility 
in  the  early  history  of  the  State.  Jesse  Burgess  Thomas  became  one 
of  the  first  United  States  senators,  and  is  known  in  history  as  the 
author  of  the  Missouri  Compromise.  The  Convention  completed  its 
labors  and  adjourned  August  26,  1818. 

Following  the  adoption  of  the  constitution,  election  for  state 
officers  was  held  and  Shadrach  Bond  became  the  first  governor.  He 
was  inaugurated  October  6,  1818  and  proved  a  safe  leader  for  the 
new  regime.  He  is  buried  at  Chester,  Randolph  County,  where  the 
state  has  erected  a  monument  to  his  memory.  On  the  monument  is 
inscribed  this  tribute :  “Governor  Bond  filled  many  offices  of  trust  and 
importance  all  with  integrity  and  honor.”  On  December  3d,  1818,  Illi¬ 
nois  was  admitted  to  the  Union  as  a  State.  In  1820  the  seat  of  gov¬ 
ernment  was  moved  from  Kaskaskia  to  Vandalia,  which  became  the 
second  capital  of  the  State. 

Governor  Edward  Coles. 

The  second  governor  was  Edward  Coles.  He  was  a  highly 
educated  and  cultured  gentleman.  He  had  been  a  slave  holder,  but 
freed  his  slaves  as  he  crossed  the  boundary  line  of  Illinois,  coming 
from  Virginia.  In  the  early  part  of  his  administration,  an  effort  was 
made  to  change  the  constitution,  in  order  to  legalize  slavery.  Gov¬ 
ernor  Coles  led  the  fight  against  this  movement,  with  energy  and 
courage,  and  prevented  the  calling  of  a  second  Constitutional  Con¬ 
vention  by  the  proponents  of  slavery  in  1824.  He  was  ably  sup¬ 
ported  by  such  men  as  Daniel  P.  Cook,  after  whom  Cook  County 
was  named,  Judge  Samuel  D.  Lockwood,  George  Flower,  Morris 
Birkbeck  and  others.  To  Governor  Coles  the  people  owe  a  great 
debt  of  gratitude  for  the  fact  that  the  stain  of  human  slavery  was 
kept  from  the  fair  record  of  Illinois. 

In  the  year  1825  the  legislature  of  the  new  state  passed  the 
first  free  school  law.  This  bill  was  introduced  by  Senator  Joseph 
Duncan,  afterwards  Governor  of  the  state.  The  year  is  also  historic 
for  the  fact  that  General  LaFayette  then  on  a  tour  of  the  United 
States  visited  Kaskaskia  on  April  30th. 

Ninian  Edwards  was  the  third  governor.  He  is  described  as  a 
fine  specimen  of  the  “Old  School  Gentleman”  of  that  period.  He 
had  been  governor  nearly  all  of  the  territorial  period,  was  one  of  the 
first  United  States  senators  and  was  Minister  to  Mexico  under  Presi¬ 
dent  Monroe.  Hooper  Warren,  the  pioneer  printer,  enjoyed  the  close 
friendship  of  Edwards. 


7 


Period  of  the  Black  Hawk  War. 

The  only  war  to  occur  within  the  borders  of  Illinois  was  the 
Black  Hawk  War.  This  was  in  the  early  thirties,  during  the  ad¬ 
ministration  of  Governor  Reynolds.  This  war  is  remarkable  for  the 
fact  that  two  men  participated  in  it  who  afterwards  became  presi¬ 
dent — Zachary  Taylor  and  Abraham  Lincoln.  Three  men  were  of¬ 
ficers  in  this  war  who  afterwards  became  governor — Ford,  Carlin 
and  Duncan.  Jefferson  Davis  and  Abraham  Lincoln  first  met  in  the 
Black  Hawk  War.  Joseph  E.  Johnston  and  Albert  Sydney  Johnston 
participated  in  this  war  as  did  also  General  Winfield  Scott.  Major 
Anderson,  who  defended  Fort  Sumter,  was  a  recruiting  officer  in 
this  war.  The  Black  Hawk  War  becomes  interesting,  therefore, 
because  of  the  many  participants,  who  at  the  time,  or  afterwards, 
became  prominent. 

Governor  Joseph  Duncan. 

The  fifth  governor  of  Illinois  was  Joseph  Duncan,  governor 
from  1834  to  1838.  It  is  said  that  more  men  of  prominence  entered 
public  life  during  his  administration  than  have  ever  entered  in  any 
similar  length  of  time  in  the  history  of  the  State.  Among  the  num¬ 
ber  may  be  mentioned  Abraham  Lincoln  and  Stephen  A.  Douglas ; 
General  James  Shields,  the  only  man  who  served  three  states  as 
senator,  namely — Illinois,  Minnesota  and  Missouri ;  Col.  E.  D. 
Baker,  afterwards  senator  from  Oregon,  the  brilliant  orator,  the 
man  who  introduced  Abraham  Lincoln  to  the  audience  at  Washing¬ 
ton  after  he  was  inaugurated,  and  who  fell  at  the  Battle  of  Balls 
Bluff,  mortally  wounded ;  O.  H.  Browning,  cabinet  officer  and  United 
States  Senator;  both  of  the  Logans,  one  the  father  of  General  John 
A.  Logan;  Col.  John  J.  Hardin,  the  hero  of  the  Battle  of  Buena 
Vista.  These  are  among  the  men  who  entered  public  life  at  this 
time.  Governor  Duncan  enjoys  the  distinction  of  being  the  only 
governor  who  was  presented  with  a  gold  handled  sword  by  Con¬ 
gress.  This  gift  was  a  present  from  the  Congress  in  the  year  1835, 
in  recognition  of  bravery  on  the  part  of  Ensign  Duncan  in  the  War 
of  1812,  at  the  defense  of  Fort  Stephenson. 

Duncan  was  a  soldier  in  the  War  of  1812,  a  state  senator  in 
1825,  represented  the  state  three  times  in  Congress  and  was  gov¬ 
ernor.  He  died  at  the  age  of  fifty  and  on  his  death  bed  he  called  his 
friends  to  his  bedside  and  left  them  this  message :  “My  friends,  let 
me  beseech  you  to  drop  everything  until  you  have  made  your  peace 
with  God.  There  is  nothing  in  the  pleasures  of  the  world,  there  is 
nothing  in  the  wealth  of  the  world,  there  is  nothing  in  the  honors  of 
the  world,  to  compare  with  the  love  of  the  Saviour  shed  abroad  in 
the  human  heart.”  With  this  message  upon  his  lips,  the  life  of 
Governor  Duncan  went  out,  and  from  the  past  this  message  comes 
down  to  us  today  as  one  of  the  brightest  spots  in  the  life  story  of 
one  of  Illinois’  leaders  in  those  early  days  of  the  thirties.  It  is  a 
message  that  deserves  to  be  classed  in  the  same  category  with  that 
great  message  of  Abraham  Lincoln,  delivered  from  the  back  plat¬ 
form  of  a  Wabash  train,  as  he  was  leaving  Springfield  to  assume  the 
presidency. 


8 


The  State  Capital  Changed. 

In  the  third  year  of  the  Duncan  administration,  the  State  Cap¬ 
ital  was  changed  from  Vandalia  to  Springfield  where  a  capitol 
building  costing  $240,000  was  erected.  The  building  is  now  the 
Sangamon  County  Court  House.  The  erection  of  the  present  State 
Capitol  building  was  begun  in  1867  and  completed  in  1887.  The 
total  cost  of  construction  and  furnishing  was  a  little  in  excess  of 
$4,000,000.  It  is  one  of  the  tallest  public  buildings  in  use  in  the 
world.  The  murder  of  Lovejoy,  the  great  anti-slavery  leader  and 
advocate  of  a  free  press,  occurred  at  Alton  in  1837,  and  stirred  the 
commonwealth  from  center  to  circumference. 

Supreme  Court  Reorganized. 

Thomas  Carlin  followed  Duncan  as  governor.  During  his  ad¬ 
ministration  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  State  was  reorganized  and 
five  additional  judges  were  appointed.  The  reorganization  was  the 
result  of  a  partisan  controversy  that  grew  out  of  a  difference  of 
opinion  on  the  question  of  suffrage  of  aliens.  Stephen  A.  Douglas 
and  Lyman  Trumbull  served  as  Secretary  of  the  State  under  Carlin. 

Thomas  Ford  became  governor  of  Illinois  in  1842.  The  State 
was  in  financial  chaos  at  that  time  due  to  a  scheme  of  internal  im¬ 
provements  begun  in  1837  and  endorsed  by  the  leading  men  of  all 
parties  at  that  time.  Many  of  these  improvements  turned  out  to  be 
monuments  to  folly.  There  were  many  who  favored  repudiation  of 
the  State’s  debt  at  this  time  and  openly  encouraged  it.  As  Gov¬ 
ernor  Coles  led  in  the  opposition  to  slavery,  so  Governor  Ford  led 
in  the  opposition  to  repudiation.  He  declared  that  the  stigma  of 
repudiation  should  never  stain  the  fair  name  of  Illinois  while  he  was 
governor.  He  led  the  people  along  the  hard  road  of  financial  em¬ 
barrassment  and  pointed  the  way  out.  His  name  deserves  to  be 
honored  for  his  bold  and  courageous  stand  that  saved  the  financial 
honor  of  the  young  State.  The  Mormon  question  was  one  of  the 
difficulties  that  confronted  the  Ford  administration  and  it  was  at 
this  time  that  the  Mormons  decided  to  leave  Illinois. 

Constitution  of  1848. 

Governor  French  was  the  first  governor  to  succeed  himself, 
serving  from  1846  to  1852.  This  was  due  to  the  fact  that  a  new  con¬ 
stitution  was  adopted  in  1848  which  cut  the  first  term  of  Governor 
French  short  two  years.  In  1848  he  was  re-elected  for  the  four  year 
term  with  little  opposition. 

Newton  Cloud,  of  Morgan  County,  was  elected  president  of  the 
second  Constitutional  Convention  of  the  State  of  Illinois  and  the 
document  is  famous  for  its  preamble,  which  was  written  by  Judge 
Samuei  D.  Lockwood.  This  preamble  has  been  re-written  into  the 
Constitution  of  1870,  and  it  is  to  be  hoped  that  it  will  forever  adorn 
the  opening  paragraph  of  any  basic  law  that  the  people  of  the  com¬ 
monwealth  may  adopt. 

The  preamble  reads  as  follows : 

“We,  the  people  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  grateful  to  Almighty 
God  for  the  civil,  political  and  religious  liberty  which  He  hath  so  long 


9 


permitted  us  to  enjoy  and  looking  to  Him  for  a  blessing  upon  our 
endeavors  to  secure  and  transmit  the  same  unimpaired  to  succeeding 
generations,  in  order  to  form  a  more  perfect  government,  establish 
justice,  insure  domestic  tranquility,  provide  for  the  common  defense, 
promote  the  general  welfare  and  secure  the  blessing  of  liberty  to 
ourselves  and  our  posterity,  do  ordain  and  establish  this  Constitution 
for  the  State  of  Illinois.” 

The  act  incorporating  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad  was  passed 
in  1851,  which  was  during  Governor  French’s  administration. 

Joel  A.  Matteson  was  chosen  governor  in  1852.  John  Reynolds 
who  had  been  governor,  supreme  court  judge,  and  congressman, 
was  elected  speaker  of  the  General  Assembly.  The  Decatur  Edi¬ 
torial  Convention,  called  by  Paul  Selby  of  Jacksonville,  and  mark¬ 
ing  the  birth  of  the  Republican  party  in  Illinois,  was  held  in  1856.  The 
state  debt  was  much  reduced  during  the  Matteson  administration. 

The  Lincoln-Douglas  Debates. 

The  year  1858  is  a  significant  year  in  the  history  of  Illinois, 
marking  the  period  of  the  Lincoln-Douglas  debates.  This  year  wit¬ 
nessed  the  greatest  forensic  contest  that  has  ever  taken  place  in  the 
history  of  Illinois.  When  these  seven  great  debates,  held  at  Ot¬ 
tawa,  Freeport,  Jonesboro,  Charleston,  Galesburg,  Quincy  and 
Alton  had  their  beginning,  the  spotlight  of  popular  favor  played 
over  the  face  of  Stephen  A.  Douglas,  but  when  they  closed,  the  halo 
of  light  illuminated  the  rugged  countenance  of  Abraham  Lincoln. 
Three  years  later,  when  Douglas  took  his  stand  by  the  side  of  Lin¬ 
coln,  and  held  his  silk  hat  and  gold-headed  cane,  while  Lincoln  took 
the  oath  of  office  as  President,  the  spotlight  of  popular  favor  again 
played  over  the  faces  of  both  Lincoln  and  Douglas,  where  it  has  re¬ 
mained  from  that  day  to  this,  destined  to  grow  brighter  with  the 
years. 

These  debates  were  held  while  William  H.  Bissell  served  the 
state  as  its  chief  executive.  His  administration  marked  the  be¬ 
ginning  of  the  control  of  the  state  government  by  the  Republican 
party,  which  lasted  for  a  period  of  thirty-six  years,  or  until  the  ad¬ 
ministration  of  Governor  Altgeld  in  1893.  Governor  Fnssell  died 
during  the  last  year  of  his  term  of  office  and  Lieutenant  Governor 
John  Wood  filled  out  the  unexpired  term. 

The  Civil  War  Period. 

Richard  Yates  was  the  Civil  War  Governor  of  Illinois,  and  he 
proved  himself  to  be  one  of  the  great  war  governors  of  the  time. 
His  prorogation  of  the  General  Assembly  is  a  significant  and  unus¬ 
ual  event  in  the  political  history*  of  the  State  and  Nation.  He  en¬ 
deared  himself  to  the  private  soldier  because  of  his  solicitude  for 
the  welfare  of  the  Illinois  troops.  He  gave  General  Grant  his  first 
commission  and  his  conduct  was  intensely  loyal  at  all  times. 

The  Civil  War  history  of  Illinois  stands  out  resplendent  in  the 
fact  that  the  state  furnished  Abraham  Lincoln,  who  saved  the 
Union,  and  Ulysses  S.  Grant,  who  organized  the  Union  Army  into 
victory. 


10 


Illinois  is  credited  with  twelve  major  generals,  namely  :  Grant, 
Logan,  Oglesby,  Palmer,  McClernand,  Schofield,  Hurlbut,  Grierson, 
Pope,  Smith,  Merritt  and  Prentiss;  twenty  brevet  major  generals  and 
twenty-four  brigadier  generals.  The  State  furnished  256,000  men  for 
the  defense  of  the  Union,  over  fifteen  per  cent  of  its  population. 
These  were  divided  among  151  regiments  of  infantry,  17  of  cavalry, 
2  of  artillery  and  nine  independent  batteries. 

One  of  the  gems  of  literature  is  Lincoln’s  Farewell  Address, 
delivered  in  Springfield  as  he  was  leaving  to  assume  the  presidency. 
At  that  time  he  spoke  these  words :  “My  friends,  no  one,  not  in  my 
situation,  can  appreciate  my  feeling  of  sadness  at  this  parting.  To 
this  place  and  the  kindness  of  these  people,  I  owe  everything.  Here 
I  have  lived  a  quarter  of  a  century,  and  have  passed  from  a  young 
to  an  old  man.  Here  mv  children  have  been  born  and  one  is  buried. 
I  now  leave,  not  knowing  when  or  whether  ever  I  may  return,  with 
a  task  before  me  greater  than  that  which  rested  upon  Washington. 
Without  the  assistance  of  that  Divine  Being  who  ever  attended 
him,  I  cannot  succeed.  With  that  assistance,  I  cannot  fail.  Trust¬ 
ing  in  Him  who  can  go  with  me  and  remain  with  you,  and  be  every¬ 
where  for  good,  let  us  confidently  hope  that  all  will  yet  be  well.  To 
His  care  commending  you,  as  I  hope  in  your  prayers  you  will  com¬ 
mend  me,  I  bid  you  an  affectionate  farewell.” 

Washington  and  Lincoln  were  two  of  the  greatest  characters 
that  ever  stood  in  the  forefront  of  a  nation’s  life.  We  would  not  detract 
one  scintilla  from  their  human  greatness,  but  we  like  to  think  of  them 
as  being  great  because  of  the  fact  that  they  were  in  their  supreme 
moments  the  resplendent  reflection  of  that  Greater  Being,  that 
Higher  Power,  by  whom  they  were  guided  and  whose  counsel  they 
sought. 

Illinoisans  will  ever  hold  in  memory  the  words  of  General  Grant 
spoken  at  the  close  of  the  great  internecine  struggle,  “let  us  have 
peace,”  and  the  World  War  has  given  us  another  four  words  to 
remember,  those  spoken  by  General  Pershing  at  that  tomb  in  France, 
“LaFayette  here  we  are.” 

Four  songs  were  written  by  Illinois  composers  during  the  Civil 
War  that  became  famous  war  songs.  They  were  “Tramp,  Tramp, 
Tramp,  the  Boys  Are  Marching,”  “The  Battle  Cry  of  Freedom,”  and 
“Just  Before  the  Battle  Mother,”  by  Root  and  “Marching  Through 
Georgia”  by  Work.  “Illinois,”  by  Chamberlain,  is  one  of  the  best 
known  of  state  songs. 

Loyal  Women  of  Illinois. 

The  loyal  women  of  Illinois  have  ever  been  by  their  devotion 
and  service  an  inspiration.  The  Civil  War  period  gave  marked  evi¬ 
dence  of  their  worth.  Mother  Bickerdyke  of  Galesburg,  the  Civil 
War  nurse,  in  whose  memory  the  State  of  Illinois  has  erected  a 
monument  costing  $5,000,  is  one  of  the  noblest  examples  of  service 
and  sacrifice  that  the  annals  of  history  records.  Her  achieve¬ 
ments  were  as  unique  as  they  were  grand.  She  ranks  with  Clara 
Barton,  Dorothy  Dix,  Florence  Nightingale,  in  unselfish  and  heroic 
service.  Mary  A.  Livermore,  the  only  woman  reporter  present  at 


11 


the  Wigwam  Convention  which  nominated  Lincoln,  was  at  the 
head  of  the  western  department  of  the  Sanitary  Commission,  one  of 
the  great  philanthropic  agencies  of  the  Civil  War.  Later  Mrs.  Liv¬ 
ermore  became  one  of  the  great  woman  orators  and  lecturers  of  the 
country.  No  history  of  Illinois  would  be  complete  without  the 
mention  of  the  name  of  Frances  Willard,  the  great  temperance 
worker  and  leader.  The  State  has  placed  a  statue  of  Miss  Willard 
in  Statuary  Flail  at  the  National  Capitol  in  Washington. 

Women  of  Illinois  can  take  pride  in  the  fact  that  the  Ladies’ 
Educational  Society,  organized  in  Jacksonville  in  the  thirties,  was 
the  first  organization  of  women,  officered  by  women,  not  only  in  the 
United  States  but  in  the  world.  The  women  of  Illinois  have  been 
and  are  today,  doers  whose  deeds  illuminate  the  story  of  the  State. 

The  Constitution  of  1870. 

In  1870  Illinois  adopted  its  third  constitution,  when  seventy- 
five  delegates  elected  by  the  people  drafted  a  new  basic  law  for  the 
commonwealth.  George  Hitchcock,  a  prominent  Chicago  attorney, 
was  elected  president  of  this  Constitutional  Convention.  The  Con¬ 
vention  met  during  the  administration  of  John  M.  Palmer  and,  as 
governor,  he  assisted  in  framing  the  executive  article  of  the  Con¬ 
stitution,  and  his  counsel  and  advice  were  frequently  sought  by  the 
delegates.  This  Constitution  has  served  well  the  purposes  of  the 
people  of  the  State.  The  last  legislature  passed  a  resolution  pro¬ 
posing  the  calling  of  another  Constitutional  Convention  and  the 
people  will  pass  upon  this  proposition  at  the  election  to  be  held 
November  oth. 

In  1871  the  great  City  of  Chicago  was  visited  by  a  most  dis¬ 
astrous  fire,  which  brought  sorrow  and  suffering,  and  great  financial 
loss  to  the  metropolis  of  the  West.  The  rapidity  with  which  the 
people  of  the  State,  and  other  states,  rallied  to  the  support  of  the 
stricken  inhabitants,  was  a  splendid  commentary  upon  the  spirit  of 
the  people,  and  upon  the  ability  of  the  people,  to  repair  their  shat¬ 
tered  homes  and  their  broken  fortunes. 

World’s  Fair  at  Chicago. 

The  World’s  Columbian  Exposition  of  1893,  held  in  Chicago, 
commemorating  the  four  hundredth  anniversary  of  the  discovery  of 
America,  will  ever  stand  out  not  only  as  one  of  the  great  enter¬ 
prises  in  the  history  of  Illinois,  but  as  one  of  the  greatest  commemor¬ 
ative  expositions  that  has  ever  been  held  in  the  history  of  the 
world. 

Illinois  came  into  the  Union  as  the  twenty-first  state,  with  an 
estimated  population  of  forty  thousand.  Today  the  population 
numbers  nearly  six  million  and  Illinois  stands  as  the  keystone  state 
in  the  richest  and  most  powerful  nation  on  the  globe.  As  a  state 
it  is  one  of  the  most  level  of  the  entire  Union,  and  is  one  of  the  best 
watered,  having  over  two  hundred  and  eighty-four  water  courses  on 
its  surface.  In  proportion  to  its  area,  which  is  5G,650  square  miles, 
it  has  more  land  under  cultivation  than  any  other  state.  In  19U 
it  led  the  Union  among  the  states  in  the  production  of  farm  products- 


A 


12 


Its  great  underground  wealth,  consisting  principally  of  coal  and 
oil,  has  contributed  to  its  greatness  from  an  industrial  standpoint. 
But  great  as  the  state  is,  and  has  been,  from  a  material  standpoint, 
the  wealth  of  Illinois  is  not  confined  to  material  things.  It  has  given 
to  the  nation  educators,  philanthropists,  statesmen,  soldiers,  and  a 
citizenship  that  has  adorned  the  pages  of  history  throughout  the 
decades.  William  Jennings  Bryan  enjoys  the  distinction  of  being 
the  only  native  of  Illinois  ever  nominated  for  the  presidency. 

Land  Grant  College  Bill. 

The  Land  Grant  College  Bill,  the  first  Civil  Rights  Bill  signed 
by  Abraham  Lincoln  in  1862  and  introduced  in  Congress  by  Justin 
S.  Morrill  was  drawn  by  Jonathan  Baldwin  Turner,  one  of  the  found¬ 
ers  of  the  University  of  Illinois,  and  whose  outline  for  industrial  and 
mechanical  education  upon  which  this  bill  was  based,  can  be 
found  in  the  proceedings  of  the  Granville  Convention,  a  convention 
of  farmers  held  in  Putnam  County  in  1851.  The  state  Universities  of 
the  country  owe  their  origin  to  the  Land  Grant  College  Bill. 

Newton  Bateman,  known  as  the  Horace  Mann  of  the  West,  was 
seven  times  superintendent  of  public  instruction  in  the  state  of  Ill¬ 
inois,  and  is  known  as  the  founder  of  our  present  public  school  sys¬ 
tem.  His  seven  biennial  reports  have  been  translated  into  five  for¬ 
eign  languages.  Bateman,  the  first  time  he  ran  for  state  superin¬ 
tendent,  was  opposed  by  two  ex-governors,  Governor  French  and 
Governor  Reynolds. 

The  collegiate  history  of  Illinois  is  one  of  the  great  facts  in  its 
development,  and  within  its  territory  are  thirty-nine  colleges,  and 
five  State  normal  schools.  The  first  colleges  to  receive  a  charter  were 
granted  their  rights  in  1835  and  three  schools  were  chartered  under 
this  act,  namely  Illinois  College,  Shurtleff  College  and  McKendree 
College.  Illinois  College  was  the  first  institution  in  the  State  to 
graduate  a  collegiate  class  which  was  in  1835. 

The  railroad  history  of  Illinois  is  without  parallel  in  the  Union 
and  the  state  has  the  greatest  railroad  mileage  of  any  of  the  forty- 
eight  commonwealths.  The  railroad  history  of  the  state  and  the 
Mississippi  Valley  had  its  beginning  in  1837,  when  a  line  was  pro^ 
jected  east  from  the  Illinois  River  at  Meredosia,  running  through 
Jacksonville  and  terminating  at  Springfield.  This  was  known  as  the 
Northern  Cross  Railroad. 

The  first  newspaper  published  in  Illinois  was  the  “Illinois 
Herald”  published  at  Kaskaskia.  Authorities  differ  as  to  the  date 
of  the  first  issue,  but  it  was  probably  about  1814.  The  Herald  was 
established  by  Matthew  Duncan,  a  brother  of  Governor  Duncan. 
The  name  was  afterwards  changed  to  The  Intelligencer.  The 
second  paper  was  the  Shawnee  Chief,  published  at  Shawneetown. 
The  Sangamo  Journal,  now  the  “Illinois  State  Journal,”  the  oldest 
paper  of  continuous  existence  in  the  State,  published  its  first  issue 
November  10,  183L  There  are  now  published  in  Illinois  172  daily 
and  1,039  weekly  newspapers. 


13 


Governors  Since  the  Civil  War. 

The  mere  mention  of  the  names  of  the  governors  of  Illinois 
since  the  Civil  W ar  is  enough  to  attest  to  the  great  leadership  that 
the  people  have  had.  The  roll  is  a  glorious  one  with  Oglesby, 
Palmer,  Beveridge,  Cullom,  Hamilton,  Fifer,  Altgeld,  Tanner, 
Yates,  Deneen,  Dunne  and  Lowden.  From  Yates  to  Yates,  the 
governors  of  Illinois  have  all  been  veterans  of  the  Civil  War  with 
the  exception  of  Shelby  M.  Cullom.  History  is  repeating  itself  in 
Illinois  in  the  Centennial  Year.  As  in  the  crisis  of  the  Civil  War 
Douglas  led  a  loyal  following  of  Democrats  to  the  support  of  Abra¬ 
ham  Lincoln,  a  Republican  president,  so  Governor  Frank  O.  Low¬ 
den  in  the  crisis  of  the  World’s  War  is  safely  leading  a  loyal  fol¬ 
lowing  of  Republicans  in  support  of  President  Wilson,  a  Democratic 
president,  in  the  conflict  that  he  has  on  his  hands.  This  is  as  it 
should  be. 

In  1861,  Illinois  gave  to  the  nation  its  peerless  leader,  Abraham 
Lincoln,  in  1918,  Illinois  joins  with  the  nation  in  giving  the  world, 
Abraham  Lincoln  and  the  principles  of  Democracy  for  which  he 
stood,  and  of  which  he  was  the  great  exponent.  The  state  has  al¬ 
ready  furnished  280,000  men  for  the  United  States  Army  and  thous¬ 
ands  of  others  have  registered  for  service.  Its  six  million  people 
stand  ready  to  make  any  sacrifice,  that  may  be  necessary  to  support 
and  strengthen  this  great  force,  to  the  end  that  victory  may  come 
to  the  Allied  arms. 

Respect,  Reverence  and  Gratitude. 

Ennobled  by  the  thought  of  the  sacrifice  and  service  of  the 
pioneers  and  great  men  of  the  past,  who  have  led  the  state,  Illinois 
is  passing  through  its  Centennial  Year,  conscious  of  the  fact  that 
‘‘Patriotism  is  a  blind  and  irrational  impulse  unless  accompanied  by 
a  knowledge  of  the  blessings  that  we  enjoy  and  the  privileges  that 
we  propose  to  defend.”  With  respect,  reverence  and  gratitude  for 
the  past,  we  come  to  the  present,  recognizing  that  upon  the  founda¬ 
tion  of  the  Christian  Church,  the  Christian  College,  the  Christian 
Home  and  the  Free  School  rest  our  power  and  the  beneficence  of 
our  institutions.  May  Illinois  begin  her  second  century  with  new 
strength  and  new  courage,  and  go  forward  with  a  spirit  of  enthus¬ 
iasm  and  confidence,  that  will  lead  in  the  pathway  of  real  pro¬ 
gress,  to  greater  heights  of  accomplishment  and  power  in  the  days 
to  come. 


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